Originally published at: Cursive handwriting coming back to schools by law | Boing Boing
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You know there’s something wrong with removing a reading and writing system when it obviously deprives young people from reading simple things from family recipes to important handwritten memos that determine various business activities.
If you can’t read and write cursive, how do you manually sign your name?
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Much to the discrimination of southpaws like me!
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I’m torn in my opinion on this news. On the one hand (heh), cursive and hand-taking notes is a very good way to retain information; that brain to hand connection can’t be denied. But in the real world we simply aren’t using pen and paper like we once did. Might the time spent learning cursive be better spent in typing class? I still curse(ive) myself for not paying more attention in my high school typing class even lo, these 30-some years later.
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still would have to do it handwritten cursive (if it becomes law, ectera).
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The sucky thing about cursive is that you still need to take the pen off the paper for some letters, so it’s half-assed on speed and you have extra burden to remember to dot and cross. It isn’t that much faster than print if you don’t use it on regular basis.
I suppose there’s no real harm in learning how. Kids learn too little in US schools anyway.
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emphasizing its value in reading historical documents
I just experienced this the other day, someone posted a handwritten note and needed help reading it.
The older people, including me, had no problem translating, the younger people couldn’t see it.
So maybe there is something to be said for this.
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By treating your signature as a memorised doodle unrelated to your handwriting. A signature should be unique and distinctive, so it really should not be simply your name written in your usual handwriting, especially if you have been taught to write in a prescribed style.
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At least that would force them to actually read their own gibberish-filled essays. Let the punishment fit the crime.
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When I was at university, my lecture notes were an illegible scrawl so I had to transcribe them the same day while I could still remember what they said. I didn’t wish that I could write neater cursive but I did wish that I knew shorthand.
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DocuSign.
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Have you seen these? Maped Left Handed Pens
I needed a pen at my left-handed dad’s house the other day and he handed me one. Being a righty, I was perplexed at everything about it, but they’re his new favorite thing. He’s also got rheumatoid arthritis and is still able to write comfortably with them, so they might just be the real deal for you sinister folks.
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A signature remains distinct because of the unique shape and orientation of the bones and muscles of the hand despite being taught in a prescribed style. People adapt their signatures by repeatedly using the muscles in conjunction with their brain. It’s relatively easy to identify an individual signature as a means of authenticating legal documents.
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What next they have to learn how to use a slide rule?
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I hope they take this opportunity to revise the cursive glyphs so that N(n) has one hump and M(m) has two. The three-humped M(m) has always irritated me for some reason.
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Well, I mean, that is how it works. I had some professors and older relatives who had no trouble reading and writing Fraktur, which gives me a lot of trouble to comprehend.
…Somehow nobody seems to think Fraktur is something everyone should know though. I wonder what the difference is. 
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Same here. The only bad grades I got in elementary school were in phys Ed and cursive writing.
These days, the only time I use it is for signatures. Otherwise I proudly print in block capital letters like an 8-year-old.
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I’d been using my real name for a few years before getting a legal name change, so I’ve had several years now to adjust to signing it instead of my birth name. I still often have a moments pause when I go to sign something as my brain tries to remember which function to execute. It’s getting less frequent, but it’s a solid reminder how much of a signature is pure muscle memory.
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